Never Let Me Fall
by AlexWeasley12
Summary: A love triangle/square involving 3 people from District 12, Jonah, Scarlett and Emerson, two are tributes. They all love someone and will go to the end of the earth for them. As the two tributes fight to win the games, they must also fight for each other's affection. Jonah for Scarlett, Scarlett for Emerson,and Emerson for Dahalia, a beautiful girl from District 2. Who will win?
1. Chapter 1

Scarlett's POV

I don't hunt. I absolutely hate it. So Jonah is the one who provides for us, and our two year old daughter. Our district is always starving, and people die off everyday, yet we were stupid enough to let her happen. We couldn't afford to feed one of us,never mind three. But even if she was going to be another mouth to feed, we knew it was our responsibility to take care of her. Jonah and I are 18, so this will be the last year we are entered in the hunger games. We both signed up for the tesserae, which is extremely dangerous, but we need the food. Yet not once has any of our names been called. And hopefully after this year we will never have to face this horrible day again.

I looked behind me as I heard Jonah come in with his latest game. I used to be a vegetarian, but with the lack of money, you don't have much choice in food. It was a rabbit, I could see the blood dripping from where he had stabbed it.

"It's smaller than usual, but it's better than nothing"

I nodded "it'll have to do.." I moved my eyes away from it. Blood disgusts me, and when I see it or smell it, I can get very sick. He took it into the kitchen and started to skin it.

This is what bothers me about these games. The blood, and how it is the innocent that must lose it all. I was pretty sure that was what bothered everyone else too. I couldn't imagine being given a knife and being told to kill 23 people. 23 people who have lives and family, and so much potential. But it is all wasted by the Capitol.

Our daughter was sleeping peacefully in her playpen. She had no idea if the events that took place this time every year. Putting on our best clothes, walking with our heads held high into the square, then watching as two people are chosen, and told they will die while all of Panaem watches them. My eyes already started to form tears, knowing this could be the fate for ether of us.

At the moment I was sewing up a hole on the only dress that I owned, a nice white one with short sleeves that ended at the knees. And a small rose positioned in the top left corner. But I put it down, since I wasn't paying attention and would eventually stab myself. I packed my sewing kit away and tucked it in a cupboard in our living room then called out to Jonah "I'm going to lie down. The blood's giving me a head ache..."

His voice was expressionless as he said "okay" to me. I walked into the bedroom to get some rest. I thought maybe if I could just dream something nice, it could all go away for a while. And when my head hit the pillow, my brain lit up with many different dreams...

Jonah's POV

It's been two years since we had our daughter. And yet our feelings have not come into play once in the last while. As our lives became more stressful, our love was replaced with survival. I hunt, she cooks, sews and cleans, and more importantly takes care of the kid.

If it weren't for that one night, the night after her brother was picked. At the time, we had been going out for less than a year. And in that time, we both knew we loved each other. When that happened, she was an absolute mess. She needed someone to come to, I was here, and suddenly we were in the bed together. Nothing works better than distraction. Sure it felt good in that moment, but we knew right after it was wrong. And now we were stuck, out little girl the only thing holding us together.

We've had so many fights. She would run out of the house, only to return a few hours later, weeping and saying how sorry she was. But she knew what I always argued was true. She was no longer the free spirited, fiery girl I wanted. Now she was up tight and always tired. And most importantly, she wasn't really lovable anymore.

As this thought popped back into my mind I sliced the knife down hard on the rabbit skin. I was messing it up horribly, but I was too distracted to even care. Food is food, and if she complained, then she could go out and get her own game from now on.

I started to think of the reaping. About what we had said we would do if one of us were picked. We could not volunteer. One would stay home with our little girl, the other could fight to their death. If both of us were picked, we would stay together until the very end, then wait to see who would die of starvation or dehydration first, because we both knew we couldn't hold a knife up to each other.

I hated thinking about these _what if's_ but the Capitol get them stuck in your head, because you know there is a possibility that they may not actually be _what ifs_. And this made my blood boil even more. All the talk about death of loved ones, having to leave a daughter behind, even if you didn't want her yet. It was all for_ fun_. But it was our life now. We fight for the entertainment of others.

I finished skinning the rabbit then set it down on the counter. At the same time our little girl started crying. I washed my hands thoroughly to make sure all the blood was gone then I went over and picked her up. Her name was Lacy. A beautiful blonde little girl, who had no idea about the world she was born into. Nor did any of us until we were older. We knew nothing of the districts, of the starvation, of the cruel society that surrounded us. But we had our own ways of dealing with it.

I stared at the face of my daughter. I couldn't imagine losing her. I loved her with all my heart, and if I were to be picked tomorrow, I knew that I would fight until the bitter end to return to her. You would think this is the type of stuff I would say about Scarlett. I do feel this way, but she doesn't feel the same back, so why waste my energy? If she died in the arena, I would be crushed. If I died in that arena, it would be a loss of a food source for her, not a loss of a loved one.

I paced around the hallway until she was asleep again, then I placed her back in the crib. I heard Scarlett's door open and turned around. "I'm not hungry tonight... Just put It in the fridge for tomorrow.." I nodded them she closed to door again.

What a waste of fresh game. She doesn't appreciate me at all, and it really gets under my skin. She hasn't a clue how much we risk when I go hunting, illegally no less, and how she has no right to complain the next day about how it tastes old and gross.

I decided to sleep on the couch tonight, so I could collect my thoughts better. I want to run away, but I can't. And I won't, for Lacy. All I know is if I am picked tomorrow, I will make sure I play my cards right, and maybe then she could finally love me...


	2. Chapter 2

Scarlett's POV

_String the thread. Pull towards you. Pull up, pull down. In the fabric, out the fabric._ All my concentration was on fixing this one hole in my dress. It was a distraction from the events that were taking place today at least. Jonah had gone for one more hunt. Just in case he wouldn't be going on any more hunting trips. Also, his game from last night tasted disgusting by now.

I pricked myself with the sewing needle. Oh great, the last thing I needed was to be dizzy today of all days. I stood up and went to the bathroom quickly and covered the cut before I saw the blood. Hopefully it wouldn't bleed too much. I stuck a bandage on it quickly then I went back out. Jonah was waiting at the door, but he was empty handed. I frowned "Nothing, at all?"

He shook his head and bits of dirt fell from his blonde curls. "Even the animals know something's going on today." he took his muddy shoes off and went in the kitchen to eat what he caught yesterday. "You know you could be a little appreciative of what I caught yesterday, it'll still taste fine.."

I walked in and watched him take it out of the fridge and when I saw it I crinkled my nose "I am. It's just, rabbit isn't the best animal you could have found. Even you know that.."

He slammed the fridge door "Oh is that so? Well, I don't see you out there, avoiding peace keepers, electric fences and dehydration, all so we could eat!" he threw the food onto the table "if you don't like it, learn to hunt, and go out and get the food yourself!" he stalked out of the kitchen and went into the bedroom, slamming the door behind him.

What was his problem? I appreciated him... Didn't I? I stared at the food, and I gaged. Meat was just not my thing, and I'm NOT sorry if I don't like killing innocent animals. Sue me.

I came out of the kitchen and checked the time. The reaping was in an hour. One hour and this will all be over, and our lives could go on. No more hunger games. For us anyways. There would be a whole new batch of children getting their names In. The stress of your first year is overwhelming. I don't know how I survived it, but that was 7 years ago, and now it would soon be done. May the odds be ever in our favor...

I somehow managed to make my feet walk from the house to the town square, with Jonah at My side. All around us were swarms of teenagers dressed in their best outfits, each one looking worried, and muttering quietly "it will be okay.." we're a small community here in district 12. When the tributes are chosen, we're all usually affected In some way. When my brother was picked two years ago, our family was a mess. Right from the beginning, we knew he never had a chance and sure enough, he was killed in the blood bath the first day of the games. I watched as the girl from our own district slaughtered him and let him bleed to death without a second thought. She was killed that same day by a career.

Jonah felt me tense up. "You alright?" He knew that this day brought back many memories, not just of my brother, but of us, and the night a baby came into play. My mother was in too much of a mess to care, and my father told me to leave and find another district to raise a family in. I never had time to listen to his advice, because when my brother was killed they both took their lives, saying how they had nothing left to look forward to. Not even a grand daughter.

"yeah I'm fine.. Just trying to get through this.." before he said another word we felt the crowd stop and start to get in order. Boys on one side, girls on the other.

Jonah faced me "the two names will be drawn, then it will be over. We can go home and-" he was starting pushed away from me and before he let go of my hand he blurted out "Scarlet I love you!-" but I couldn't respond, and I was going with the crowd, and suddenly placed in between two girls my age.

That was the first time in two years he had said those words to me. I convinced myself he didn't love me anymore, because it made me feel a bit better that I had lost my feelings for him. I looked up as I watched the capitol representative giving the usual speech, but I tuned it out so I could think.

My stomach was twisting in knots, and I felt so stupid for thinking he would have done all that stuff for me if he didn't love me. I treated him horrible, and I used him as my personal food source. Everything he said was true and I didn't listen. Suddenly My thoughts were interrupted when Zinnia Pearlgate, the capitol rep put her hand in the bowl of names. She dug through the pile of paper slips then quickly flicked her wrist and grabbed a name. She held it up to the light and gave a huge smile "our first tribute is... Scarlett Holmes!" the crowd stayed silent, and if it weren't for all the cameras and people next to me, I would have thrown up...

Jonah's POV

"Our first tribute is... Scarlett Holmes!" my head snapped over to her, I could see her red hair easily among the crowd. As the peace keepers came to grab her, I waited for someone to volunteer. Surely everyone knew she was a young mother with no experience. But it stayed silent, only the wind and her soft quiet struggling grunts were heard.

My eyes followed her as she was thrown on stage and dropped like a rag doll. _Come on.. Stand up..._ I thought. She looked so venerable up there. After a minute she finally managed to find her balance and she pulled herself up to a weak standing position. Her face looked strained. She was holding back tears clearly but they were bound to come any moment. Ether that, or she was holding back vomit. I don't know how she would do up there in front of everyone, but she kept her stance.

Suddenly they called the boys name. "Our second tribute is... Emerson Blackwood!" I turned as a boy in the row in front of me was grabbed. He had black hair, and looked to be about 16-17. He was somewhat muscular, and you could see his bones slightly in his face, and he also had a piercing in his lip. Weird kid. He was dropped on the stage the same way Scarlett was, but he got to his feet much faster, and he didn't look like he was going to cry. Still, he seemed weak.

"These are your two tributes for this years games! Give them a round of applause!" but only the people from the capitol clapped, and it died down the second it started. Everyone, including me, looked up at the two of them, and we were all thinking the same thing. _'We aren't winning this one..'_


End file.
